If you would like to send your child to a different school next year, now’s the time to start researching your options. As Maryland commemorates Nat-ional School Choice Week (through Jan. 31) at 165 events across the state and nearly 11,000 events nationwide, many parents will begin evaluating educational opportunities that are available for their… Read More

At the J, we engage thousands of people every day following the fundamental value of kol arevim zeh lazeh: all Jews are responsible for each other. We are here for everyone in our JCC community, no matter one’s religion or level of practice. Whether you visit the Rosenbloom JCC in Owings Mills, the Weinberg JCC… Read More

The Jan. 11 solidarity event in Paris was, for this viewer, a day full of anomalies and disappointments. First, there was the march of world leaders itself. There in the front row was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with, to his left, the president of Mali, French President François Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the… Read More

The kosher supermarket was chosen deliberately. Men, women and children were shopping and preparing for Shabbat. Only two days before the attack, terrorists had left 10 of the best-known satirical journalists and cartoonists dead at Charlie Hebdo. Three French police officers were also struck down, one of them a Muslim. Each Islamist terrorist attack targeted… Read More

Have you heard that you can pop some serious tags with only $20 in your pocket? The hip-hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis aren’t the only one who have capitalized on the increasing popular interest of thrift-store (also known as conservation) shopping. Although I’m not a fan of the lyrics, I do appreciate the reference…. Read More

The official announcement that King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia had been taken into a Riyadh hospital “to undergo some medical checkups” suggests serious concern about the health of the 91-year-old monarch because he is assumed to have excellent medical facilities in his own palaces. Theoretically, his successor would be his half-brother, Crown Prince Salman, who… Read More

Much has been written about how “Exodus: Gods and Kings” is unfaithful to the biblical narrative. A movie is midrash, exploring a biblical text. That is why I am not troubled with adding an Israelite elder named Nun, a character absent in the biblical text except in Joshua’s patronym ben Nun, nor with the plagues… Read More

Another secular year has ended and a new secular year has begun. It’s time to review and time to plan. What can be different in the coming year? And while the yearly refrain of “the more things change, the more they stay the same” repeats in our thoughts, I can’t just accept what has been…. Read More

Recently, I broke off a little before the end of the powerful Millions March against police brutality in Baltimore to warm up with tea and chili at the Lost City Diner. I was proud to have joined Baltimoreans of all walks of life, including many of my fellow organizers of Jews United for Justice (JUFJ… Read More

Here’s a quick mental exercise: How many reusable bags do you own? Do they make it into the store with you on your various shopping excursions? For many years, my family had a small supply of reusable bags that we had divided between our cars so that we would have them on hand when running… Read More